Kevalar a good idea . . . and easy.

mb

:: The under-deck portion of the aft lowers is very
:: important! I replaced all the standing rigging at one
:: point but neglected (forgot) the below-deck section of
:: wire. It failed on a windy day, and I was very lucky not
:: to blow a hole in the deck and/or lose the rig.
::
:: I have replaced the below-deck section with 1/4" kevlar.
:: This is easy, inexpensive, and longer-lasting than steel
:: wire.
::
:: The 1/4" kevlar has eye-splices at each end, is doubled
:: over for twice the strength (much stronger than the
:: fasteners, aft lowers themselves, etc), and tightened
:: with spectra lashing. I had one person stand on the deck
:: when I tightened them--they've probably settled in a bit
:: since then.
::
:: I have back-to-back folding pad-eyes mounted on the deck
:: (one above deck for the aft lower to connect to; one
:: below deck for the kevlar support). There is an
:: eye-strap attached to the seatback support, spreading
:: the load across two 10-24 bolts.
::
:: I've posted a photo of this arrangement in the "Deck &
:: Rigging Photos" photo album (currently the last picture
:: in the album).
::
:: Single-strand eye-splices like this are easy and fun, or
:: your local rigger can easily whip one of these up for
:: you.
::

:: --brendan